TW 17

Chapter 17

It was all because of that damn dream.

Ever since that day, Hae-il’s gaze had been helplessly ensnared by Danbi’s lips.

Her lips were naturally vivid with color, but on the days when she applied lipstick over them, taking his eyes off them became an ordeal in itself. Whenever she reported something or answered one of his questions, the soft movement of her plump lower lip inevitably overlapped with the images from his dream.

Those lascivious lips that had breathlessly called his name while taking him into her mouth.

He had become obsessively curious about the contours of the body hidden beneath the loose black T-shirts she wore every day, beneath those shabby scraps of fabric.

Before he knew it, his eyes were relentlessly following Danbi everywhere—even inside the office, during meetings, and in those fleeting moments when they passed each other in the hallway.

The T-shirts that hung loosely down below her chest made her silhouette look fuller. But precisely because of that, the slender line of her waist that occasionally appeared for an instant when she put a hand on her hip or stretched made Hae-il lose his senses.

He felt an urge to grab her pale, slender ankles that were precariously exposed beneath her jeans.

He wanted to leave traces of himself on every inch of her skin—marks that would never disappear.

And the deeper those dark thoughts became, the more Hae-il sought Danbi out.

“Ms. Danbi. Come here for a moment.”

Using work as an excuse, or even deliberately creating new tasks, he somehow manufactured opportunities to encounter her. If that wasn’t enough, he would even inflate the size of meetings just to have a reason to see her.

But the more he did so, the paler Danbi’s face became. A shadow would fall across her features, and her expression would stiffen like stone.

And the more she reacted that way, the darker the impatience boiling inside Hae-il became.

Just hurry up and admit you know me. Please.

Say something. Tell me that we should become comfortable enough to look each other in the face even when we’re not talking about work. I’ll accommodate everything.

You waited for me for more than ten years. So why are you making it feel as though I’m the one who’s been waiting for you all this time?

A surge of resentment and irritation rose painfully to his chest.

“We’ll begin the meeting.”

It was time for a meeting called regarding Project B.

Hae-il noticed Danbi exchanging glances with a man sitting directly across from her. Judging from his seat, he seemed to belong to the Planning Team.

Are they acquainted?

Well, while working on a project, it was hardly unusual to collaborate with various departments.

When the man lightly clenched his fist in a gesture of encouragement, Danbi responded with a soft smile in her eyes that Hae-il had never seen before.

That smile was far too radiant.

It irritated him blatantly.

There was a subtle atmosphere between them, almost like the way a woman treated a man.

Well, perhaps they know each other casually. They’re not close enough to be completely informal, so maybe that’s all it is.

He desperately suppressed his discomfort.

That evening, there was a company dinner to celebrate the official launch of the project.

Hae-il resolved that tonight, he would finally share drinks with Danbi and properly establish a relationship with her.

No matter how shy Danbi was, surely alcohol would loosen her up enough for everything she had been holding inside to come pouring out honestly.

With such a firm expectation in his heart, he arrived at the restaurant.

Hae-il naturally scanned the tables, already thinking about taking a seat beside or across from Danbi.

But in the seat across from Danbi—the place he had naturally assumed would be his—there was already a dark shadow sitting squarely in place.

He recognized him at a glance.

It was that very Planning Team bastard who had exchanged those inexplicable glances with Danbi in the conference room earlier that day.

What the hell kind of bizarre situation is this?

The team leader hadn’t even taken his seat yet, and this guy from another department had the audacity to sit in his place.

I’m right here. Han Hae-il is right here, wide awake and breathing in the same room as you, and you don’t even spare me a glance because you’re busy flirting with another guy?

“Oh, Team Leader Han, have a drink…… I suppose it’s because you take after the CEO, but you’re really…….”

Hae-il barely managed to wedge himself into the nearest seat beside Danbi’s table.

He half-heartedly responded to the section manager’s flattering remarks beside him, mechanically filling and emptying his glass.

But all his senses were focused solely on Danbi.

Ha. There it is again.

Danbi was once again giving that bastard an affectionate smile with her eyes.

The man immediately became even more boastful and talkative.

Anyone watching them would think they’re a couple who’s just started dating.

Hae-il felt his insides twist as he downed his soju in one gulp.

The heat of the alcohol burning down his throat seemed to pour fuel directly onto his anger.

Why is she acting like that?

Is she trying to make everyone at work misunderstand their relationship?

If a man is making such an obvious move on her, shouldn’t she know how to shut him down herself?

That frustratingly slow-witted woman hadn’t changed at all since she was younger.

Even when Lee Suhyeon had pursued her so persistently, she had never properly drawn a line with him and had simply been dragged along by his advances.

And now, more than thirty years old, she was still accepting everything with that vacant expression.

Idiot.

Inexperienced fool.

Stupid woman.

I’m Han Hae-il. I’m right here.

Where the hell are you looking?

I’m not in America anymore. I’m in Korea, at the same company, sitting at the table right beside you, watching all of this.

Crunch.

Without realizing it, Hae-il began gnawing on the rim of his soju glass with his front teeth.

He could almost hear the glass cracking.

Just then, the conversation between Danbi and that man reached his ears.

“May I wipe it for you?”

“Ah, it’s okay. I’ll go to the restroom later and…….”

“Hmm. That’s kind of funny.”

A moment later, Danbi stretched her neck slightly and brought her face closer to the man.

As though he had been waiting for exactly that, the man gently picked up a tissue and wiped the corner of her mouth.

Ah, those two…….

A violent surge of emotion made Hae-il’s hand tremble.

The freshly filled soju glass slipped from his grasp and fell helplessly to the floor.

Crash!

The glass shattered with a sharp sound, scattering fragments in every direction.

Only then did Danbi’s startled gaze finally land on Hae-il.

There was unmistakable bewilderment in her eyes.

But it was clearly different from the flustered embarrassment he had once seen in her—the kind that had been colored by excitement.

Danbi hurriedly excused herself to go to the restroom and left her seat.

Several people briefly looked toward Hae-il because of the broken glass, but he paid them no attention.

His eyes remained fixed on the man still sitting across from Danbi’s now-empty seat.

The moment Danbi disappeared, the man checked his reflection on his phone screen and adjusted his appearance.

It was obvious that he was conscious of Danbi.

Strangely, he looked almost exactly like Hae-il himself had looked before coming here, when he had stood in front of a mirror carefully straightening his clothes.

Hae-il gave a quiet scoff.

Danbi may look like that, but she has always had impossibly high standards.

She liked me that much. There’s no way she’d be attracted to an utterly ordinary-looking man like him.

Even when Lee Suhyeon, who was considerably better-looking, had pursued her so persistently, she hadn’t been excited.

She had only been frightened.

Hae-il desperately tried to reassure himself with those thoughts, but the knot in his chest refused to loosen.

That soft smile Danbi had shown the man earlier kept flickering behind his eyelids, irritating Hae-il to no end.

Today, at this gathering, there was no denying that the Planning Team man had received Danbi’s attention for longer and more deeply than Hae-il had.

That fact felt like suffocating humiliation.

“Anyway, if you could put in a good word with the CEO…….”

Hae-il mechanically responded to the toast offered by the team leader sitting beside him.

Without properly touching any of the food, he emptied two bottles of soju in succession, his insides boiling with impatience and anger.

I can’t take it anymore.

I’m not waiting any longer.

I can’t keep matching Danbi’s unbearably slow pace.

Hae-il roughly emptied the last of his soju into his mouth, slammed the glass onto the table with a sharp clack, and abruptly stood up.

Everyone’s attention immediately turned toward him.

But Hae-il didn’t have even a moment to spare for the surprised expressions around him.

“Phew…… Excuse me. I’m going to the restroom for a moment.”

It had already been a month since their reunion.

And Danbi had finally shattered the last remnants of Han Hae-il’s patience.

There was no way he could continue sitting there like this.

Hae-il went looking for her.

Where are you, Lee Danbi?

I stopped that successful life I had in America and came all the way here just to see you.

Do you have any idea how much opportunity cost I paid to come here?

Why do you keep making me chase after you like this?

If your first love appears right in front of you like this, then even if you can’t cling to him and thank him properly……

You timid fool.

Idiot.

Bear-brain.

He shook his head heavily, trying to clear away the fog of alcohol, and looked around inside and outside the restaurant.

As Hae-il lingered near the entrance, a familiar yet sweet scent drifted toward the tip of his nose on the breeze.

It was that very scent that faintly emanated from Danbi whenever she passed by.

Hae-il followed the fragrance as though hypnotized.

A few steps away from the restaurant, deeper inside a dark alley where even the glow of the streetlights seemed to be swallowed by the darkness, he finally found Danbi.